


Night of the Triffids

by Tarlan



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: mcsheplets, Community: trope_bingo, M/M, Sex Pollen, Trope Bingo Round 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-05
Updated: 2013-10-05
Packaged: 2017-12-28 11:50:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/991686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarlan/pseuds/Tarlan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Escaping from another boring social event was supposed to be easy until he found himself trapped in the hydroponics bay with John.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Night of the Triffids

**Author's Note:**

> Written for:  
>  **trope_bingo** : sex pollen  
>  **ancientctybingo** : Entertainment tonight  
>  **mcsheplets** 160: breakfast

The new hydroponics bay on Atlantis was a marvel, displaying some of the unique flora discovered on various planets across Pegasus. Even though Rodney refused to acknowledge botany as a real science, he was still reasonably impressed with the work carried out by that department under Doctor Parrish. Parrish's predecessor - Katie Brown - had begun the project years earlier, and Rodney recalled with some embarrassment that day he was trapped in the hydroponics bay with her.

Instead of becoming engaged, they had broken up, and it had taken Rodney a few weeks to understand exactly what had gone wrong with their relationship. Now it seemed as if part of history was repeating itself as he stared in horror at the sealed door. He had only entered the bay to get away from the influx of I.O.A. dignitaries brought onto Atlantis for yet another one of those boring formal events. For some reason Woolsey always expected him to provide their entertainment for the night by mingling among them and extolling the wondrous discoveries they had made since entering the city years earlier. Rodney understood the need to 'grease the wheels' to ensure they retained funding and support but he also knew from past experience that none of these people were interested in more than a glimpse of the amazing architecture and a few pretty blinking lights. They were not interested in a history lesson on the Pegasus natives by Teyla or the differences between an Earth whale and a Lantean flagicallus by their resident xeno-zoologist.

He sighed and leaned his forehead against the cool surface. This was supposed to have been a bid for freedom, not a prison. He'd planned this escape for when no one would notice that he'd slipped away, and if no one was paying attention in the biology lab next door then this quarantine would go undetected until morning.

Rodney cursed because it was his fault that the quarantine protocols in the botany area were so tight. He'd forced the botanists to lock down their areas to avoid any pollen dispersing into the rest of the city. His concern had been the dispersal of any seeds into Earth's atmosphere, recalling 'War of the Worlds' where the red weed from Mars had slowly choked the world until it too succumbed to Earth's microbes and died off along with the Martian invaders. The Ancients seemed to have taken such a threat seriously though so he knew the filters were more than sufficient for the task without the added precautions. Still, with everything else that had gone drastically wrong over the years, he really hadn't wanted to take that chance.

So here he was now, without a datapad or console, and with no means of discovering why the doors had sealed while he was hiding out behind the Cerresian fuschia-type plant. All Rodney knew was that Deputy Chen had sprayed some perfume atomizer just moments before leaving the hydroponics bay after her short tour by Doctor Parrish, and less than a minute later, the doors had sealed behind them.

"Rodney?"

He blinked in surprise and turned as he heard the familiar voice call his name.

"John?"

Rodney frowned as John stepped out into the open from behind a strange triffid-like plant, glad to be temporarily distracted by the sight of his best friend. He should have known John would duck in here to escape the torturous small talk of the politicians gathered in the main auditorium too.

"What's going on, Rodney?"

"I have no idea." 

He caught some movement out of the corner of his eye, almost positive that the triffid-plant hadn't been flowering minutes earlier. While he watched, he saw a fine spray erupt from one the open flowers, only then noticing how several of the other flowers were also sending up a fine mist of pollen. Aghast, Rodney grabbed the pocket handkerchief from his suit pocket and held it over his nose and mouth, convinced it was why he'd begun to feel hot and slightly light-headed.

"Oh that is just perfect," he announced, indicating towards the pollen, convinced that he could already feel his histamine levels rising.

John seemed confused as he looked over his shoulder, but when he looked back he was blinking rapidly. He froze, staring hard at Rodney as if he was seeing him for the very first time, and it took Rodney a moment to realize what was different about John in return. It was his eyes; the green-gold irises had been swallowed by black as his pupils dilated. When John licked his lower lip, Rodney latched onto the sight, the handkerchief dropping from his fingers as a tight heat coiled in his belly.

He blinked very slowly, licking his own suddenly dry lips and when he opened his eyes John was right in front of him, barely inches away. It seemed the most natural thing in the world to lean in a fraction and kiss him. As more of the flowers added to the mist of pollen surrounding them, Rodney felt everything slip away in a fog of need as his whole being focused on John and the incredible sensation of John's lips and hands upon him.

When he finally came back to his senses, he was lying on the soft ground, completely naked, with John sprawled on top of him, equally naked. He moved cautiously, half expecting to feel twinges of pain but instead he ached pleasantly in all the right places, including certain places where he hadn't felt that amazingly good ache since his youthful experimenting days back in North Western. His slight movements seemed to awaken John, who blinked owlishly at him before blushing furiously and rolling away. A pointy elbow into Rodney's side made him wince as John scrambled to his feet awkwardly, lacking all of the grace that Rodney usually associated with him.

It took a moment longer to realize that sky was lightening through the transparent panes high above them, casting a golden light across the plants, and across John's skin. The flowers on the triffid-plant had closed up tight and, equally embarrassed as John, Rodney snatched up his clothes, turning away as they both dressed. When he turned back, he found it hard to meet John's eyes.

"What the hell happened?" John demanded.

"I have no..." he snapped his fingers rapidly. "The flowers."

Before he could say anything more, the door slid open and Parrish stepped in, blinking in surprise when he found them there. Rodney felt the heat rush into his face anew, only then realizing how close they had come to being found lying in a sweaty mess of tangled, naked limbs on the ground.

"Doctor McKay! Colonel Sheppard!" He glanced around as if expecting to see someone else step out too.

"I'm just going..." John indicated beyond the now open door and strode away quickly before Rodney could respond.

"Doctor McKay?"

Rodney turned back to Parrish, staring at him for a moment. "Um... carry on," he stated and walked away quickly, desperate to get back to his quarters to clean up and get out of the formal clothes that he had pulled back onto his sweaty body.

An hour later, Rodney was surprised when John joined him for breakfast in the mess hall as usual having half-expected John to avoid him like he had contracted the Hoffan plague. Instead John slipped into the seat opposite, both of them trying for nonchalant but Rodney kept catching the way John flicked his gaze towards him when he thought Rodney wasn't looking.

"So, what happened?"

Rodney cleared his throat. "The esters in Deputy Chen's perfume setoff a reaction in the... the..." he wiggled his fingers. "The one with the pale yellow flowers. They released a pollen containing a chemical that acted liked a hormone when in contact with the human endocrine system-."

"Sex pollen?"

"Rodney wince. "Technically it was more like..." Rodney sighed.

"So it...this..." John waved his hand between them, "could have happened with anybody."

Rodney considered lying but the truth was that the pollen simply lowered sexual inhibitions for those already inclined towards the other person. If there had been no sexual interest to begin with then nothing would have happened other than a sense of mild intoxication. Rodney knew he had stood no chance as he'd long harbored a desire for more from his best friend, but had kept that hidden purely because he hadn't wanted to risk losing that friendship. 

He blinked in sudden realization. Except John must have wanted him in return, else he would have easily pushed Rodney away. Calling up the data on his tablet computer, he slid the tablet across and watched as John read the report of Rodney's findings.

"So I didn't..." John winced, "Coerce you into...?"

"No."

All the tension in John's body seemed to vanish instantly, and he began to actually eat his breakfast rather than push it around his tray. Rodney had felt his own appetite return at the same time, glancing up occasionally as he changed the subject and started ranting about the I.O.A. and all the schmoozing he was forced to do instead of real work.

With the last swallow of coffee topping up the caffeine racing through him, and his relief at not having lost his best friend due to an unfortunate event with sex spore - unfortunate because he had no idea what had happened between them, only that something pleasant had happened - Rodney began to rise, intending to bus his tray and head to his lab. As he rose, John's strong fingers clamped around his wrist and Rodney sank back down upon seeing fresh tension on John's face.

"I don't recall anything from last night... just a physical sense of... feeling good."

Rodney nodded. "I...uh... Yes. No. I don't..."

John smiled. "But I want to remember."

Rodney swallowed hard. "I don't think it's possible to retrieve those memor-."

"Then maybe we should make new memories," he stated the words nonchalantly, glancing away before flicking his gaze back cautiously to judge Rodney's reaction. 

"Maybe we should," Rodney breathed, feeling the pleasure coil inside him once more as John's eyes locked with his.

"Except... _without_ the sex pollen this time," John stressed.

Before Rodney could reply, John was on his feet and heading to the clearing station with his breakfast tray, with the words, 'See you later, Rodney,' drifting over his shoulder.

Rodney grinned as he watched John leave, wishing it was 'later' already.

END


End file.
